


would you walk with me to the convenience store in the middle of the night

by snowdrops



Category: D.Gray-man
Genre: Alternate Universe - Convenience Store, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Go with the flow, Location - Taiwan, Slice of Life, not sure where this is going
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-11
Updated: 2016-03-11
Packaged: 2018-05-26 01:54:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 979
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6218959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snowdrops/pseuds/snowdrops
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A cashier is working the overnight shift when a girl walks in an hour past one.</p>
            </blockquote>





	would you walk with me to the convenience store in the middle of the night

**Author's Note:**

> So I've relocated to Taipei, Taiwan to study for a semester. I had a muse to write - something, but what exactly I have no idea. The words I wrote amounted to this story, born in the middle of a rainy Taipei night. It's quite a different style from what I'm used to writing, and it's also a form of experimentation on my part. I don't know where this story will go, but it definitely won't be as long nor huge a story as my previous few.
> 
> D.Gray-man and all characters found within this story belong to Katsura Hoshino. I do not claim ownership over them.

**would you walk with me to the convenience store in the middle of the night**

_would you walk with me to the convenience store in the middle of the night  
when it’s pitch dark and there’s no light_

=

I can feel the rush of cold air when the door opens and someone walks in. It’s not raining yet, but I figure it will be soon. I’m bent over filing some receipts from the previous few transactions, and when I stand up all I can see of my customer is that she’s a girl.

She slides open the fridge door, takes a cursory glance at the snacks inside, then shuts it. There is a five-beat pause before she opens it again, stretching a pale arm in to fish out an onigiri.

At the drinks fridge, that same pale arm shoots out again to grab a bottle of milk tea - the kind so favoured here in Taiwan. Then she turns; walks briskly down the shelves with products arranged neatly in rows towards the cashier. She is looking down, eyes trained on her wallet, digging out a few coins.

I prepare the smile I reserve for my customers when I’m working the overnight shift; the smile that reassures them that even in the dead of night, there’s someone else still awake in this brightly lit convenience store.

When she reaches the counter, she looks up at me with a slight smile as she hands me the items. I notice that her eyes are a stunning shade of violet, and her hair a long silky black, and I smile back.

The items scan without any problem; she hands me exact change. We thank each other, and she picks the items up. I expect her to walk out of the shop, continue her way back home, but instead she sits down at the table nearest to the window and begins to eat her onigiri.

I’m slightly surprised, but almost half a year at this job has taught me to get used to unexpected things. So what if it’s an hour past midnight, she might be heading to the clubs or a friend’s place, or – the possibilities are endless, so I stop thinking and busy myself with adding more eggs to the boiler and cleaning the table that the bunch of drunkards messed up right before the girl entered the shop.

While I’m at it, I make a cup of hot mocha for myself as well.

My only customer sits at the table, her back facing me. She isn’t using a phone - I actually haven’t seen her take out a phone. She’s just sitting there, eating and drinking like it’s just a typical lunch break, excuse the fact that all she has is an onigiri and a bottle of milk tea.

I take a look at the door; the rain has started. No wonder she’s not leaving anytime soon. Taipei rains around this time of the year are notoriously wet and cold, and it’s not exactly well-lit outside. The streets are empty, even the few street lamps seem dulled by the weather.

I walk over to her.

“Would you like a hot drink?”

She startles, obviously not expecting the question. I guess not many cashiers strike up conversations with their customers in the middle of the night when they’re in the midst of some late-night reverie (or snacking, whatever).

“Uh…” she fumbles for an answer when her mind finally processes the question.

“It’s cold outside, anyway. My treat.” Some part of my mind screams at me that this is not a bar and it sounds too much like I’m offering her alcohol with… intentions, but I shut it up.

She gives another small smile. “Okay then. I’d like something non-caffeinated, please.”

Well, this girl is full of surprises. I head back to the counter, start making her some hot chocolate. It’s done soon enough and I bring it to her. Mentally, I congratulate myself for turning into a waiter.

“Thank you,” she beams at me. “It’s awfully nice of you to do this.”

I give an awkward laugh and scratch the back of my head as I stand next to the table. “It’s nothing, really. The weather’s not letting up. Are you waiting out the rain?”

She nods, a gentle tip of her head. “I actually wanted to just come in and grab the onigiri and take a walk outside, but then it started pouring. I was definitely not prepared for it.”

“Taking a walk outside at one in the morning?” I can hear the incredulity in my voice, but I can’t help it.

There is a faint chuckle from her as she covers her mouth. “Late night walks do fantastic things when the heart is muddled. As do quiet meals in convenience stores.”

 _Ah. I get the hint._ I laugh and say, “Can’t say I’ve been there, but I’ll leave you to it then. Enjoy your meal!"

She looks up at me, her violet eyes full of some hidden message that I can’t read. They flicker to my breast pocket for a split second, probably eyeing my employee name tag, before she smiles again and looks at me. "Thank you very much, Lavi."

"My pleasure."

I turn and walk away to replenish the paper in the photocopier.

When she stands to leave half an hour later, she walks to the cashier counter where I am sitting and reading a book.

“Thank you, Lavi. I’ll see you around.”

I nod reflexively, shooting her another smile and a “Yes, thank you, see you again!”

Only when the door chime rings and I see her pick up an umbrella from the wet umbrella rack outside the store, do I realise that maybe it wasn’t the rain she stayed for. And a tiny part of me feels peeved that she knows my name, but I don't know hers.

=

**Author's Note:**

> I think there was a lot of smiling; I wanted to do away with them but decided to let the smiles remain because it's still a very polite, stranger-on-the-street interaction. Taiwanese people smile a lot too, which sort of makes it a bit more realistic.
> 
> My main inspiration for this story was definitely the prevalence of convenience stores here in Taiwan - there are around 10000 convenience stores over the country, with almost 5000 of those belonging to 7-11. The convenience stores here are really set up for 'convenience' too - people can come in, grab a microwavable meal, an onigiri, a sandwich, and sit down at the tables to eat like any other restaurant, or they can just come in to buy a hot coffee from the cashier. To the best of my understanding, the story includes what products and services I know the convenience stores in Taiwan offer, and any tweaking of the facts is done for creative license.
> 
> Thank you for finishing this chapter and I hope you enjoyed it. Do let me know what you think by leaving a comment or a kudos! Constructive feedback is much appreciated, and suggestions on where to carry the story are more than welcome too.
> 
> Also, my other stories are currently on indefinite hiatus. I have laid out plans for them, but they have not been written and structured properly yet. I will eventually get around to finishing them, but for now, this will be my main project as I also do want to explore Taiwan while I'm here.


End file.
